Ross victims were killed in the line of duty

I was hoping you'd consider a condolence visit to Ross Township, since you'll be in Scranton Friday.

Of course your speech on education in Scranton is important, your time is limited and the demand on it is substantial. I completely respect that.

But perhaps you could, for a moment, step off the bully pulpit and embrace a community devastated after performing the very thing your office stands for. Do it for those killed and injured in the line of their civic duty.

After all, they were practicing what you preach.

Ross' tragedy was smaller in scale than other inexplicable violent acts that have plagued this planet since, well, eternity.

But Ross was different.

The murders of three civilians happened during a public meeting. As those people were exercising the cherished and uniquely American tradition to participate in their government. That's particularly important here in the commonwealth, with 2,562 fiercely independent municipal bodies.

We as citizens of these municipalities expect to be heard and have disputes settled peacefully. That's what those meetings are set up to do.

Which also makes what happened in Ross an attack on how we live.

Those meetings can be ugly. Unruly. And sometimes unfair. But they are sacred.

You, as president stand on top of the pillar of American democracy. Ross is at the bottom. But I'd argue the free functioning of community-based governments like Ross, is the pillar's foundation.

It always takes a tragedy to remind us of what's really important. Ross Township was one of those reminders. Hug your children. Say hello to the neighbor. Let that motorist merge ahead of you.

For a short time, our differences no longer separate us. We are all citizens. No, we are all human beings. We value life and we mourn its loss.

But of course you know that and you've got the Middle East, unemployment and the IRS to worry about.

It doesn't take much to see that the problems of a rural Pennsylvania community doesn't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world.

Yet think about the families of those injured and those who lost their loved ones. They were serving your ideals. And ours.

So if that plane leaves the ground and you're on it without coming to Ross, deep down you'll regret it. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But someday and for the rest of your life.

Not all battles are fought in a theater of war with Kevlar-lined helmets and close-quarters combat.

No, you can't take away their pain, but by paying a visit you can show the country's recognition of their service and sacrifices on the front lines of freedom.